


middle of the sea

by ofrainyskiesandviolets



Series: derry girls: trying to be pretty canon in between episodes [3]
Category: Derry Girls (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2020-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:40:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 658
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23107111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ofrainyskiesandviolets/pseuds/ofrainyskiesandviolets
Summary: Post 1x3Erin finds that life-after-Toto is sad. Sadder than sad. James and Orla decide to help her feel better.
Series: derry girls: trying to be pretty canon in between episodes [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1615570
Comments: 8
Kudos: 40





	middle of the sea

**Author's Note:**

> As always, I take a few liberties with plot but nothing egregious obviously lol.  
> It’s shorter than the others, so apologies for that but you know, brevity is fun too (sometimes)

Though Erin enjoys the blackmail material that came with her mam lying about Toto’s not-death, she still misses him. A lot. Like a lot a lot. He might as well be dead. She’d never see him again, and honestly probably didn’t want to. That would just make it harder. 

She’d had that dog for years; he was like her child and the house felt empty now, even with her wild family always running about. She misses Toto. She wonders if he even remembers her. It didn’t seem like he did earlier. 

Erin wonders if Orla’s going to come up and pester her. She honestly wishes she would because Erin’s bored and sad and doesn’t want to go downstairs and face her mam. Maybe she’s just being dramatic, but she thinks that every once in a while she’s allowed to. 

She doesn’t come down for tea, her stomach rolling at the thought of her dog forgetting her. She longs to pat his head and feels his fur under her hand. Father Peter had been a distraction—a good looking one at that—and all the abandonment from the past days hurt her. She’s so lonely. Erin is a lone island, without even a coral reef off the shore to keep her company. 

As the sun is setting, her door opens and Orla and James come barreling in. Orla leaps into her bed, with her wild curls spilling across the blankets, frizzy flyaways escaping her ponytail. She has a blue-stained mouth, and Erin can imagine her sucking down lollipops, can hear them clinking against her teeth. James stays standing, refusing to sprawl out on her bed; she almost feels bad seeing him still so awkward, so out-of-place. Her heart goes out to him, shockingly (despite Michelle’s doctrine of ridiculing him at all times), thinking he found a friend in the priest, only for him to end up calling him a dick and leaving. He hadn’t even done anything, really.

“Where were you, Orla?” Her cousin never misses supper, and especially not for spending time with James. 

The British boy ends up answering. “We went down to the shops.” He’s holding a bag from Dennis’ Wee Shop in front of him, shuffling in place. He’s so uncomfortable. It radiates from him in waves. 

“For what?” Her voice sounds thick still, and she clears her throat. She hates feeling the thick coating of mucus moving around. 

James pulls a small stuffed dog out. Its fur is a little scraggly and matted, old and brown. It looks like Toto. 

“We were thinking you might need another dog to keep you company.” Erin takes the dog from James and runs her hands over its stitches. The room falls strangely silent, James and Orla watching her closely. 

She pulls James in, and he makes a surprised note in the back of his throat. Erin buries her face into the smooth curve between his neck and shoulders. He smells like something sweet and earthy, and it’s comforting, though she can’t quite place the scent. James cautiously wraps his arms around her. Erin can hear his heartbeat pounding in his chest. God, he’s such a nervous lad. It sort of makes her heart ache. 

“Thank you,” she murmurs. “It means a lot.” He relaxes quite a bit, tightening his grasp around her. James becomes a coral polyp along the edge of her island. 

“Of course, it's not a problem.” Erin stays in his grasp for a moment, and it strikes her that James is extremely nice. When she returns to her bed, she pats a spot on her blanket. He hesitates. 

“You’re really not that big of a dick, you know, James.” He smiles, tentatively sitting on the edge of her bed. 

“Thank you, Erin.” 

She looks down at the dog in her lap and smiles. Orla breaks the silence.

“I said we should steal the mouse from the science lab for you. He’s cracker, isn’t he?”

**Author's Note:**

> I didn’t like this one as much, but I think it’s still pretty good, y’know? I hope you enjoyed it, and guess who’s finally going to be in the next one!!! Clare will finally get her moment to shine hehehe  
> Have a lovely day, thank you for reading :))


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